Mood Disorders

Question 1

What are the major mood disorders?

Answer 1

Depression and bipolar

Question 2

List specifiers of a major depressive episode

Answer 2

• psychotic features
• melancholic
• mixed features
• anxious distress
• catatonic features
• atypical features
• peripartum onset
• seasonal pattern

Question 3

Dysthymia

Answer 3

• depressive symptoms present for more than a two year period (one year for kids and adolescents)
• symptoms can be subsyndromal or meet major depressive episode criteria

Question 4

List four theories of mood disorders

Answer 4

• Genes and heredity
• Physiological explanations
• Psychological explanations
• Sociocultural explanations

Question 5

What are two examples of pharmacological treatments?

Answer 5

• anti depressants (SSRIs)

- mood stabilisers e.g. lithium, sodium valporate

Question 6

What are two examples of psychological treatments?

Answer 6

• cognitive behavioural therapy

- interperosnal psychotherapy (IPT)

Question 7

What is the connection between bereavement and depression?

Answer 7

Depression is not diagnosed if precipitated by and occurring within six months of bereavement of some sort

Question 8

Major depressive episode: 5 or more of the following over a 2 week period, at least one depressed mood or diminished interest in activities, and….

Answer 8

• significant weight loss or gain
• insomnia or hypersomnia
• psychomotor agitation
• fatigue
• feelings of worthlessness
• diminished ability to concentrate
• recurrent thoughts of death

Question 9

List major depressive specifiers

Answer 9

• psychotic features
• melancholic
• mixed features
• anxious distress
• catatonic features
• atypical features
• peripartum onset
• seasonal pattern

Question 10

What is the prevalence of major depression?

Answer 10

Lifetime prevalence 16%

Question 11

Prevalence of suicide

Answer 11

4 in 1000

Question 12

Bipolar disorder 1

Answer 12

At least one manic episode has been experienced

Question 13

Bipolar disorder 2

Answer 13

At least one hypomanic episode and one depressive episode

Question 14

Mixed features

Answer 14

When some level of mania and depression cooccur. Higher suicide risk because hopelessness associated with depression is backed up with the energy level and motivational drive of mania.

Question 15

List the theories of mood disorders

Answer 15

• genes and heredity
• physiological explanations
• psychological explanations
• sociocultural explanations
• existential explanations

Question 16

Describe genes and heredity as a model of mood disorders

Answer 16

• mood disorders have genetic component
• bipolar disorder seems to share genetic overlap with schizophrenia
• mood disorders and anxiety

Question 17

Describe physiological explanations as a model of mood disorders

Answer 17

• neurotransmitter functioning and sensitivity (serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine)

Question 18

Describe psychological explanations as a model of mood disorders

Answer 18

• stress and trauma
• negative cognitive triad
• learned helplessness
• manic defence hypothesis
• dysfunctional reward sensitivity

Question 19

Describe sociocultural explanations as a model of mood disorders

Answer 19

• gender bias due to society’s sexism
• tendency for women to internalise responses, men externalise
• emotion focused coping vs. problem focused

Question 20

Describe existential explanations as a model of mood disorders

Answer 20

There are aspects of modern life that cause conflicts for people and these can lead to depression

Question 21

List the ways of conceptualising unipolar depression

Answer 21

• depression as lived experience
• depression as illness
• diathesis stress weighting
• diagnostic heterogeneity

Question 22

List the ways of conceptualising bipolar disorder

Answer 22

• separable traits

- importance of recurrence

Question 23

What is the ‘manic defence hypothesis’ (as a psychological explanation of mood disorders)

Answer 23

Mania evolved as a compensatory mechanism as depression is highly maladaptive

Question 24

What is the ‘dysfunctional reward sensitivity’ (as a psychological explanation of mood disorders)

Answer 24

Mania is a response to hyper-activated reward sensitivity, while depression is a response to obstructed reward sensitivity

Question 25

Hypomanic episode

Answer 25

An attenuated state of mania where similar symptoms are present, but to a lesser extent and duration. Symptoms only present for four days and episode not severe enough for impairment or hospitalisation.

Question 26

Cyclothymic disorder

Answer 26

- numerous periods of hypomanic and depressive symptoms that do not meet criteria - symptoms continue for at least 2 years - present more than 50% of the time and with no more than two months at a time without symptoms - criteria for full mood episodes must not be met

Question 27

Name the depressive disorders

Answer 27

- major depressive episode/disorder | - dysthymia

Question 28

Name the bipolar disorders

Answer 28

- manic episode - bipolar 1 - bipolar 2 - cyclothymic disorder - hypomanic episode - mixed features

Question 29

Mixed features

Answer 29

Some level of mania and depression

Question 30

Why does mixed features have a high suicide risk?

Answer 30

The hopelessness of depression is backed up with the energy level and motivational drive of mania

Question 31

Explain depression as a lived experience

Answer 31

Depression falls on a spectrum with normative experiences of sadness

Question 32

Explain depression as illness

Answer 32

Depression has a strong biological diathesis that drives the problem

Question 33

What is the opposite side of depression as illness?

Answer 33

Environnemental components are strong - people who get depressed usually have reasonable stressors to get depressed about

Question 34

Describe diathesis stress weighting

Answer 34

A spectrum of depression ranging from highly biological to highly situational

Question 35

Which treatment is best for biological depression

Answer 35

Medication

Question 36

Which treatment is best for situational depression

Answer 36

Psychotherapy

Question 37

Describe diagnostic heterogeneity

Answer 37

Depression viewed as a non specific psychological reaction to a whole range of stimuli

Question 38

What does the DSM not acknowledge when it comes to depression?

Answer 38

- differences between who has had one and who has had 20 depressive episodes - differences in the weighting of biological diathesis vs. emotional stress

Question 39

Describe separable traits for bipolar

Answer 39

Can view mania vulnerability and depression vulnerability as separable traits in bipolar disorder

Question 40

What are some 'common themes' of mood disorders

Answer 40

- focus on transient emotional states - states are viewed as episodic - importance of recurrence of symptoms - level of energy and activity cycle affected as strongly as emotional state is

Question 41

What are the four steps of a suicide risk assessment?

Answer 41

Intent, plan, timeline, means